Now Available In The New York Times: Nobel Prize-Winning Blogger

Paul Krugman, a professor at Princeton University and an Op-Ed columnist for The New York Times, was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science on Monday.

Mr. Krugman received the award for his work on international trade and economic geography. In particular, the prize committee lauded his work on for “having shown the effects of economies of scale on trade patterns and on the location of economic activity.” He has developed models that explain observed patterns of trade between countries, as well as what goods are produced where and why. Traditional trade theory assumes that countries are different and will exchange different kinds of goods with each other; Mr. Krugman’s theories have explained why worldwide trade is dominated by a few countries that are similar to each other, and why some countries might import the same goods that it exports.

Mr. Krugman has been an Op-Ed columnist at the New York Times since 1999, and continues to teach at Princeton. In 1991 Mr. Krugman received the John Bates Clark medal, a prize given every two years to “that economist under forty who is adjudged to have made a significant contribution to economic knowledge.”

The Times neglects the most important part of Krugman's CV: He is a crazily prolific blogger. Here's how he covered his own news this morning:

Tyler Cowen notes that this is truly a "real world pick", a nod to economists who write concretely about economics directed towards the public and to policy makers. Cowen also has a good set of links to help familiarize yourself with his work. He points fondly to Krugman's critique of Austrian trade cycle theory and a paper on why Brits have such bad food.

You also have to wonder whether the choice was seen as an anti-Bush pick, given Krugman's consistent criticism of the current administration.